English
imprison
Imprison comes from Old French emprisonner ‘to imprison’, from Latin prehēnsiō ‘an act of seizing, apprehending, arresting,…’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʰed- ‘to find’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʰed-‘to find’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʰnédtireconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*hendō‘to hold’reconstructed
- Proto-Italic, derivedc. 1500–700 BCE*praiɣendōreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprehendō‘to lay hold of, seize, grasp, grab, snatch, take, catch’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEprehēnsiō‘an act of seizing, apprehending, arresting, capturing’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400prison
- Old French, derivedc. 842–1400emprisonner‘to imprison’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500emprisonen
- Middle English, derivedc. 1150–1500imprisonen
- Englishearliest quotation 1980imprison
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʰed-‘to find’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʰnédtireconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*hendō‘to hold’reconstructed
- Proto-Italic, derivedc. 1500–700 BCE*praiɣendōreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEprehendō‘to lay hold of, seize, grasp, grab, snatch, take, catch’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEprehēnsiō‘an act of seizing, apprehending, arresting, capturing’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400prison
- Old French, derivedc. 842–1400emprisonner‘to imprison’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500emprisonen
- Middle English, derivedc. 1150–1500imprisonen
- Englishearliest quotation 1980imprison
Earliest quotation: 1980, AA Book of British Villages, Drive Publications Ltd: “One of the village's most notable sons was Thomas…”
Proto-Indo-European *gʰed- ‘to find’
…
Latin prehēnsiō ‘an act of seizing’
Old French prison
Old English prisūn ‘prison’
Middle English prisoun ‘prison’
English prison
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *gʰed- ‘to find’
yet, guess, prey, predator, apprehend, predation, reprieve, beget, impregnable, prehensile, 31 more
through Proto-Italic *praiɣendō
through Latin prehendō ‘to lay hold of, seize, grasp, grab, snatch,…’
surprise, prize, comprehensive, apprentice, comprehend, comprehension, comprise, apprehensive, reprehensible, apprehension, 13 more
through Old French prison
Today it means
verb To put in or as if in prison; confine somebody against their will.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *gʰed- / imprison